Korn came together in 1993, in Huntington Beach, California. Now, their
Epic/Immortal self-titled debut is winning critical acclaim from the music
community. Dark, intense lyrics front this hard-hitting sound. The band
is comprised of Jonathan (vox, bagpipes), Fieldy (bass), Brian (guitar),
James 'Munky' (guitar), and David (drums). Be sure to eat your vegatables,
son.

Pit: Tell me about the bagpipes - how did you come up with that?
Are you of Scottish descent?

Jonathan: I went to a high school that had a pipe band. I started
taking lessons at school, then I took private lessons and started
competing. I always wanted to learn how to play that instrument, but I
never thought I'd play it in a band. Then we wrote this song and thought
we'd try it; it just worked.

Pit: How did the band come into being?

Jonathan: Munky, Fieldy and David had been playing in a band for
like the last ten years, and then Brian got in the band. The singer
didn't work out. They saw me in Bakersfield, where we all grew up, and
asked me to try out. We just clicked. We wrote three songs our first
practice. That's how Korn started. Two months later we were signed. And
here we are.

Pit: What does the name stand for - what does it mean?

Jonathan: We had a party in Bakersfield and there were these two
homosexual guys talking - they were talking about how they were having sex
with each other. One guy was eating the other's butthole and he blew
diarrhea all over the other guy's face, and when he opened his mouth he
had a corn kernel on his tongue. So, I used to walk around to people who
knew the story and say 'corn' to gross them out. It just stuck in my
head. I spelled it like a kid would.

Pit: You're from Bakersfield, California. What kind of childhood
did you have?

Jonathan: The normal hell-childhood. It's like out of a Stephen
King novel - it's crazy. Nothing to do.... only thing I did was study
music, because my dad owned a music store. So I took a lot of lessons.
Eventually I learned to play a lot of things.

Pit: You're very impassioned when you're on stage. How do you feel
when you're playing live?

Jonathan: I don't really know; I just get in a state. I don't
know what I do. I get to a point where I feel everything - all the pain
that I feel inside, all the passion for my songs. I can't remember
anything after; I just go for it. The band tells me what's going on after.
Haven't you ever gotten that freaked out?

Pit: I have, but not on a regular basis.

Jonathan: Well, that happens to me every time. There were a
couple of shows where I snapped out of it, and I just hated the shows.
Things went wrong.

Pit: What do you expect to see in the crowd?

Jonathan: I usually jsut see lots of kids going crazy - jumping
around in pits. I expect to see the kids having fun.

Pit: Is there a message in your music?

Jonathan: I guess the only one is to be honest with yourself. I'm
tired of seeing hardcore kids acting like they're so tough, so hard, so
bad, but they actually have feelings. It's hardest to be yourself. If
you've got to be a fake, then who are you trying to fool? I have a lot of
problems with all the testosterone.

Pit: Is it hard for you to be honest with yourself?

Jonathan: It was for a while, but it's not anymore. Now that I
have my music I can get all this out. It's like therapy for me.

Pit: Your album has gotten a lot of critical acclaim. How does
this affect you?

Jonathan: I think it's great. I never dreamed it would be like
this, but getting good reviews makes it worth it. I had no idea that
people would relate to me so much.

Pit: What do you think makes your music different?

Jonathan: Maybe it's our grooves. That's a good question.

Pit: What do you see as the world's biggest problem right now?

Jonathan: Us, I guess. The people. The politics. Stuff I don't
care to talk about. I hate politics. Everyone should just kill
politicians. America is a huge business; they do fucked up shit to us.